


The Life of a Soldier

by TheGirlontheEdgeofForever



Category: Naruto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-30
Updated: 2012-03-30
Packaged: 2017-11-02 17:53:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/371735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGirlontheEdgeofForever/pseuds/TheGirlontheEdgeofForever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Kiba suffers from PTSD. Set after his battle with Sakon and Ukon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Life of a Soldier

Fire. So much fire. Too much fire. Akamaru, shaking. Can’tbreathecan’tbreathecan’tbreathe. Yelps. Kiba’s senses were fucking up.

He wanted to shout out, “I’m coming for you, buddy!” but all that came out was a howl: a howl of loss. Akamaru was dead; Kiba knew it. What’s worse, there was nothing he could do about it.

Angry, he jumped into the flames…

and burned and opened his eyes

and he was up in his bed.

He had tears in his eyes, which was not unusually his response to the nightmare. Yeah, he’d had it before. Multiple times. And every night when he closed his eyes and slept, he relived his worst fear of failing Akamaru.

He felt the need to get up, to check things. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, his mother had called it. The event with Sakon had obviously been bad enough, but Kankuro had saved him. But, then again, if he hadn’t, Kiba didn’t have to pretend—

Akamaru would have been dead, and Kiba would be to blame. Which meant one thing: Kiba was weak, and worthless, and Akamaru deserved a better trainer; but Kiba didn’t want to let go.

Even if he tried, his mother wouldn’t allow it, anyway.

He walked around his house, peering into each door, making sure it was safe. _Fuck,_ he thought, trembling. _This is bullshit. Sakon’s dead. Ukon's dead. Akamaru and I are both stronger… No. We fucking aren’t. I failed him once, and I’ll do it again._

Kiba had liquid sadness, fear, agitation, self-loathing… all running down his cheeks. He needed to man up and finish checking the house.

When he reached the back of his house, he heard a tapping. He stopped, cold. Everything smelled normal, but….

Since when could he trust himself? Not since losing to Naruto, and especially not since the fight against Sakon. Kiba, terrified, slowly opened the door, preparing for the worst.

_It’sSakonhe’snotdeadhe’salivehe’sverymuchaliveandhe’saftermeandhe’safterAkamaruandwe’reallgonnadieallgonnadieallgonnadiegonnadiegonnadiediedie._

The knocking turned out to be the tail of another family member’s dog, wagging.

How could he have missed that? Kiba ran back to his room, crying, ashamed.

_Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck. I’m such a screw-up._ Kiba rushed into his bed, beside a calmly resting Akamaru.

Somewhere along, he fell asleep, only to have the same nightmare. He awoke, teary-eyed and alive. But he realized at that moment that he really didn’t want to be.


End file.
